Manali – E-Wam Shedra Rangri Buddhist Insitute

E-Wam Shedra Rangri, Manali

The Rangri monasteries will always welcome and entertain you very kindly. As soon as you arrive, you will be amazed by the relatively large stupa and the medium-sized garden, where the monks spend quite a bit of time when the weather permits. There is also a house with a kitchen in the garden. The rest of the area is made up of a small modest temple where the monks study, have classes, and puja. There are a few modest houses here, where the monks are quite cramped in their rooms. Monks here generally have a problem with space. They have little space there and are dealing with renting land next to the monastery from the government. They live there with many animals, so there is a very studious and at the same time lively atmosphere.

A bit of history: Manali E-Wam Shedra was established in 1974. Monks from Spiti Komic Monastery live here and perform rituals and preserve Buddha Dharma in the region under the guidance of H.E Ngor Khangsar Shabdrung Rinpoche.

Over the years, Manali E-Wam Shedra has been blessed and visited by many high lamas, Rinpoches and Khenpas from various traditions of Tibetan Buddhism including HH the 14th Dalai Lama. Therefore, Manali Shedra is considered a holy and key place for practicing and studying Buddhist philosophies.

As of 2015, a Buddhist philosophy class and Tibetan literature were started here with ten students. This was followed by the Bodhicaryavatāra teaching cycle, the 37 practices of the Bodhisattvas, and the teachings of Nagarjuna. Teaching subjects such as Tibetan language, grammar, poetry and literature promotes the quality and level of reading, writing, speaking and listening skills.

The monastery is currently headed by the venerable, learned and very kind Khenpo Ngawang Lhundrup, who hails from Komik Monastery in Spiti.

Monks here must study for at least more than thirteen years on the subject of the six main areas of Buddhism (Parmana, Madyamika, Pargyaparmita, Abhidharma and Vinaya) and other important texts of Buddhism. At the same time, they also study Tibetan grammar, literature, poems and English. After completing the study of Buddhist  sutras, he has to study for another three years the subject of Buddhist Tantra, which includes all four Buddhist Tantras (Kriya Tantra, Charya Tantra, Yoga Tantra and Auttarayoga Tantra). After graduation, the monks either go to teach in the world or go on lifelong retreat under the guidance of H.E Ngor Khangsar Shabdrung Rinpoche.

Currently, Manali E-Wam Shedra has four main Buddhist philosophy classes and one basic class for new monks along with approximately more than forty students.

Among the challenges that the monks have to deal with, due to the increasing number of students and the limited space, is also water. They need larger, more durable, more permanent equipment to filter safe water. They don’t even have a washing machine yet. There is a garbage dump nearby, so the monks have to deal with the demanding smell.

Winter is not a problem for them. Only 3 monks stay there year-round to perform puja and rituals, the others go on pilgrimage to Bodhgaja.

The fact that monks see their families approximately once a year is also interesting.

FB page of the monastery